Gabrielle Giffords’ PAC attracts little interest

Introduction

A political action committee former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., created last summer has attracted little interest from donors, a new campaign finance filing indicates.

Gabby PAC headed into 2013 with just more than $8,000 in its account, having raised only $250 between Nov. 27 and Dec. 31, according to documents filed this afternoon with the Federal Election Commission.

Its spending likewise proved modest, with several thousand dollars in airline tickets accounting for its most notable expenses.

Gabby PAC officiallyformed in August, with Giffords’ husband, Mark Kelly, suggesting at the time that it would serve as a vehicle for promoting solar energy, veterans affairs and border issues when not making donations to like-minded politicians. It raised about $29,000 on the year.

Giffords formed Gabby PAC — a traditional PAC that may raise up to $5,000 a year from individuals — months before the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.

In its aftermath, Giffords, who continues to recover from a gunshot wound to the head sustained during a 2011 mass shooting at a community meeting, formed a gun control-focused super PAC she’s calling Americans for Responsible Solutions.

Liberal super donor Steve Mostyn is serving as Americans for Responsible Solutions’ treasurer, and along with his wife, Amber, promised to seed it with $1 million. The super PAC is also slated to have a nonprofit sister organization.

Why is 2013 an important year for campaign finance? Dave Levinthal and Michael Beckel will answer that, and many other questions about the money-in-politics world in a live chat on Monday, Feb. 4, at 1 p.m. ET.